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Push the ball one way with the outside of your foot, then snap it back the other way with the inside of the same foot, all in one motion. Also called the flip-flap or snake. Creates the illusion of going one direction before exploding the other way. Ronaldinho made it famous, though Rivellino and Sérgio Echigo were doing it earlier. At speed, it's almost impossible to defend.

Barcelona versus Real Madrid. The biggest club match in football, loaded with political and cultural baggage between Catalonia and the rest of Spain. It pulls in over 400 million viewers globally. The Messi-Ronaldo years (2009-2018) turned it into a personal duel between the two best players on the planet, and they faced each other 34 times. The history is full of wild games, controversy, and individual brilliance.

Argentine term for the classic number 10, roughly meaning "hook" or "connection." Plays centrally behind the strikers, linking midfield to attack through vision and passing rather than running. The enganche gets creative freedom but doesn't track back much, which makes the role rare now that everyone has to press. Riquelme was the perfect example - all touch, all passing, zero interest in defending.

The xG value of chances created. If you play a pass that leads to a shot worth 0.3 xG, you get 0.3 xA. It measures the quality of chances you create, separate from whether your teammate finishes them. A player with high xA but low actual assists has teammates letting them down. A player with lots of assists but low xA is getting lucky with their finishers. Useful for evaluating creative players fairly.

Like xG but only for shots that actually hit the target. It measures how good the shot was, not just the chance. A weak shot straight at the keeper from a great position has high xG but low xGOT. A rocket into the top corner from 25 yards has low xG but high xGOT. Useful for evaluating keepers - if they're conceding more than xGOT, they're underperforming.